Description

The route consists of 9 wonderful leads of exposed climbing on excellent rock. Pitch 1 is quite easy and is fairly short, ending on a decent belay stance after about only 50 feet. Pitch 2 traverses left (exposed but easy climbing) to a short dihedral which terminates atop a flake (same belay as Comici Route). Pitch 3 climbs diagonally right, trending towards a chimney/gully system. Pitch 4 follows the gully/chimney and involves a bit of fun stemming. Pitch 5 is the crux, and may have a move or 2 approaching the 5.7 level (old school 5.6, UIAA Gr. IV+), where a finger traverse left is needed to surmount a tricky, slightly overhanging section with poor footholds. Pitch 6 is the real reason for doing the route: a marvelous slab with beautiful holds for both hands and feet, never exceeding 5.5 in difficulty. Natural protection with several drilled and cemented pitons. Pitch 7 diagonals left towards the Comici Arete, and all subsequent pitches are congruent with the Comici route described elsewhere.

Location

This route begins about 30 feet right from the "Comici Route" start. Descent is initially a short downclimb to a drilled in anchor to the North, about 15 feet below the summit spire. Two abseils are needed to reach a platform between the two Falzarego Towers. Descend through the split between the massifs; some spots are quite steep and polished and may require a rope. There are a few knobs where a short abseil may be prudent. Once out of the gully between the towers, additional steep terrain is encountered until an old military mule track road is reached. The descent is NOT pleasant.

Protection

All necessary protection is fixed, either bolts at the belays or cemented in pitons. Numerous threads are also possible.

An additional comment re: descent. The descent is arduous and time consuming; don't underestimate how long it will take to get off the peak. Maybe that I was nursing an injured knee has affected my viewpoint, but others have expressed similar comments to me privately.

A recent discussion of the rock quality with guidebook author Mauro bernardi, between the starts to the Comici vs. Via della Guide confirms what I had been told by other climbers visiting the area. The start of the Comici has some pretty awful rock. I gave a 4 star quality rating to Via della Guida on that basis.